


A Valentine's Day to Remember

by TigerNightCat



Series: Final Fantasy Shifters AU [2]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Final Fantasy XV - Shifters AU, Fluff, Other, Platonic Relationships, Sappy Ending, Valentine's Day Fluff, overcomming hardships of status, slavery - implied
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-27 18:48:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17772269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TigerNightCat/pseuds/TigerNightCat
Summary: Being a shifter is hard when you're not allowed out and about like normal humans, but help is always around when you're determined to give a gift to the ones you love.





	A Valentine's Day to Remember

**Author's Note:**

> This happens before the FFXV Shifters AU main story happens. 
> 
> Lilliana has been Prince Noctis's pet for almost 5 years now.

There are some days she just hates being a shifter. Usually it’s smooth sailing, she gets to ignore meetings, lounge in the sun as much as she wants, pretend the humans don’t exist outside of her little made family. It’s a pretty good gig in her opinion. At least until the special gift giving holidays come around the corner. Then she wishes she were as human as the rest of her made family.

  
It’s been another year as the Prince’s pet. Another year as the gunner’s best friend’s friend. Another year of being a shifter who is not allowed to roam around the palace by herself and go into stores to buy things like any other human. No. Pets aren’t allowed outside without being leashed. They can’t run errands like the servants can. They can’t go window shopping like humans can. Pets can’t do much of anything without their human Masters around. Which makes it extremely difficult to get anything for a pet’s owner and friend when she actually likes them.

  
Thankfully she has another pack that she can rely on to help her get the things she wants in order to make Valentine’s Day gifts for her Sunshine and Moonshine. Well she hopes she can rely on. She's never actually asked them help her before and this was a bit much for a first request

  
Her favorite pack of humans was Pack Nyx. They weren't shifters, but may has well been the way they interact and how close they are to each other. They were Kingsglaive and her closest friends outside of her family foursome.

  
One day, two weeks before the big day, she was lounging around the training room waiting for Gladio to finish training her owner when she saw one of Pack Nyx on the other end of the hall. Glancing over to see how much longer she had she decided to go and talk to Tredd.

  
She asks him where his Alpha is and he gives her a confused look and says Darutos is in his office. She shakes her head and clarifies that it’s Nyx she’s looking for. He shakes his head and points her in the direction of Nyx’s office. She leaves with a thank you to go find the man.

  
At the door she hesitates though. Sure his pack always brings her along for any shenanigans that she can sneak away for, but this would be deliberately getting her away from her owner. They could get in major trouble for doing this.

  
As if reading her mind the door opened and Nyx walks out of the office nearly into her upraised fist. “What’s up kitten? What’s got you looking troubled?”

  
“It’s nothing. I’ll figure it out. Sorry to bother you.” She turns away but is stopped by a hand on her shoulder.

  
“Seriously, what’s up?” he pulls her around to face him again.

  
She looks down, holding her one arm in the other in a nervous gesture. She nearly whispers, “I was wondering if you would be willing to help me.”

  
“With what? Something to do with the boys?”

  
She nods looking up through her hair “I want to make something for them, but I’m a shifter,” she trails off trying to not get her hopes up too much just in case.

  
“You need to get away and into a few places. Say no more. When do you want to do this?” He smiles at her assuaging her fears.

  
“You will?” She perks up, worried tears in her eyes.

  
“Yep, where do you need to go? I’ll get the others to keep the boys busy for a day while we sneak around.”

  
“Thank you!” She tackle hugs him. “I wasn’t sure. I didn’t want to risk you getting in trouble.”

  
“You’re always worth it kitten. Now tell me more.”

  
***********

  
Two days later she opened the door tentatively at the knock she heard. She knew who it should be, but couldn’t be completely certain until she saw who it was.

  
Nyx stood outside the door grinning down at her. “Ready to get this party started?”

  
She smiles back at him and grabs her leash for him to hold. She clips it on and away they go.

  
The first stop is the kitchens. She used all her charm, and a bit of Nyx’s, to sweet talk some honey candies and chocolates from the head baker. It wouldn’t be seemly to just let a shifter have some because they asked, but if the owner asked, then giving a bit of extra for for their favorite palace shifter would be acceptable. When none of the aids were looking, she gives the head baker a big hug, gently of course, in thanks.

  
She hoards the gifts away in a backpack as soon as she can and then it’s off to the tailor’s. Nyx has made an appointment to get fitted for a new jacket while she looks for the things she needs. She’ll own him big for this. He hates fittings almost as much as she does.

  
While he is getting poked and prodded she sneaks into the other room full of cloth and finds the colors she needs and the thread to go with them. Ignis didn’t have the colors she wanted but he does have needles she can borrow. She slips the smallest amount she thinks she will need into the backpack and slips back into the other room for the remainder of Nyx’s fitting.

  
They get her back home in time for her to hide her acquisitions upon her favorite perch above the hallway to the entrance. She greets her owner at the door and he promptly collapses onto the nearest couch complaining of his dad keeping him in meetings all day. “I wish you could’ve been there, then at least I would have had a small distraction to make them all bearable, but no. No shifters allowed.” _Did the King do it on purpose? How the heck would the King know? I never said anything near him or his. The King is scary._

  
Prompto and Gladio staggered in close on Noct’s heels. They looked exhausted but no worse for ware. Gladio had a few new bruises forming and Prompto had a few singed pieces of clothing but no burns on his skin. She checked. _Libertus and Tredd must’ve put them through their paces today._

  
Last came Ignis storming in from the outside and making a beeline for the kitchen. Growls to rival a shifter’s could be heard and half rants about the price of potions on a Thursday versus a Tuesday and how many Rubyshears could take on a Coeurl if they were land based rather than water based. _Go Crowe. Haven’t heard him this riled up in a long time._

  
Once the advisor calmed down she asked where he kept his sewing kit. Her excuse for needing it was a bit frail but it was the only thing she could think of for needing it. He offered to fix her things for her but she hedged, saying she wanted to try herself. He eventually let her have it but it took longer than she would’ve liked.

  
Each night she would sneak out of whoever’s room she had settled in at the start of it and jump up to her perch to work on her projects. Someone had slipped buttons into the backpack that would go perfectly with her project. (A very carefully done Thank You note would be left behind at one of Noct’s fittings and a few less prods and a few more smiles would result from then on.) She had a little light, patterns, and scissors up there and she tried to not get frustrated with how silly her attempts looked. After almost ten days of pricked fingers and stolen phones for reference pictures, she had finished.

  
The morning of Valentine’s Day the boys were so busy she didn’t have a chance to give them her gifts. They were running from one appointment to another, to a third ceremony and another building dedication. It was chaotic.

  
She saw countless people give her owner candies, stuffed animals, and flowers. Some of them looked so spectacular and real she didn’t want to give her gifts anymore because how could her amature works stand up to professionally made gifts?

  
It seemed everyone knew Prompto’s love for birds as well. He was nearly buried under them at one point, there were so many. He had grown into a handsome man and the world saw it too. He had a following of his own to rival that of Noct’s.

  
She didn’t feel confident about anything anymore. She could protect them just fine, but she didn’t feel good enough to give them anything though. Maybe she should just toss it all.

  
The thing that made her decision for her was the King himself. He somehow _knew_ she had some gifts for the boys and mentioned it to them. As soon as they got inside the suite they pounced her asking about it.

  
“So we heard that you have been working on something for a while. What is it?” Noctis asked her oh so subtly.

  
“Yeah, what have you been up to kitten?” Prompto piped up on her other side. The boys had been boxing her in on either side, not letting her have a place to run away.

  
She stutters backing up against a wall in the foyer, glancing back and forth between the two males. “I, uh, I. Yes I, um, was working on something. A gift for you two.”

  
“Oh? A gift, for us? When can we see it?” Noctis asked leaning against the wall next to her, arms crossed in front of him. “I’m really curious.” He had a sly half smirk on his face and was making full eye contact.

  
“Please kitten? Can we see it?” Prompto leaned against the wall on her other side. His hand had come up and was playing with a strand of her hair, toying with it between his fingers.

  
If a squeak was what they were going for, they got it. She made a small strangled noise and bolted between them Changing on the run and jumping up onto her perch. She was so red even her fur was tinted. They rarely ever ganged up on her like that and they knew all her buttons to press to get the best reactions from her. It took her a good five minutes to be calm enough to Change back into human form. She grabbed her gifts and dropped back down onto the ground. The boys had followed her and were waiting for her below her perch.

  
She ducked her head, still bright red, and holds out one hand to each of the boys. In her left hand a chocobo plush in bright yellow. In her right, a light teal carbuncle plush. Each plush had a little bag around their necks that revealed chocolate and sweets when opened. As soon as the boys took their respective presents she pulled her hands behind her, looking at her feet and scuffing one on the floor in embarrassment.

  
She gives them a small smile “I wanted to make you something special, but I’m a shifter and couldn’t do it alone. I had to have a lot of help. I did my best.”

  
“Did you make these by hand?” her moonshine asked quietly. “They’re adorable. This carbuncle. It’s perfect.”

  
“I love it.” her sunshine said on the other side. “This is the best present I’ve ever received. They’re perfect. Thank you.” He hugs the chocobo close and smiles brightly at her.

  
“We have a gift for you as well, kitten. Hold out your left hand for me?” She looked up at him and slowly put out her left hand. He had kneeled down in front of her and brought out a long box. He opened it revealing a delicate chain bracelet. Engraved on one link is ‘Noctis’. He takes it out of the box and puts it on her wrist. “It’s made of adamantium. It won’t break even if you shift so you don’t have to take it off if you don’t want to. I may not be able to take off your collar, but I hope you won’t take off this one willingly.”

  
She’s nearly in tears looking at it when her sunshine kneels down as well pulling her left ankle towards him. He pulls out a long box of his own and opens it to show a similar chain anklet with ‘Prompto’ engraved on one link. “I know I’m not your owner, and I don’t want to be, but I hope you won’t take this off willingly either. You’re special to me and I don’t ever want to break that bond with you.” He hooks it onto her ankle and it fits like a glove. “It’s also adamantium and won’t break if you shift. We wanted to get you something you could have all your own, that no one could take from you.”

  
She’s speechless, her free hand over her mouth in shock. She’s a shifter, just a pet. She’s not worth this in her own mind, but in theirs she apparently is. “You two. My gift isn’t worth this. I’m not worth this.”

  
“It’s never been about an exchange of worth. You’re ours and we hope you’re ours willingly. You’re the best friend we could hope to have and we don’t want you to feel chained to me because of some stupid collar.” They had both stood up, closed in, and hugged her tight between them. “You know I’d let you go in a heartbeat if I could but I’d like it if you wanted to stay.”

  
All she can do is nod into their shoulders. She’s crying she’s so happy. They want her to stay. She loves them. They’re her sunshine and her moonshine and she never wants to leave them.

  
Maybe being a shifter isn't so bad after all.

 


End file.
